An agricultural harvester e.g., a plant cutting machine, such as, but not limited to, a combine or a windrower, generally includes a header operable for severing and collecting plant or crop material as the harvester is driven over a crop field. The header has a plant cutting mechanism for severing the plants or crops, such as an elongate sickle mechanism that reciprocates sidewardly relative to a non-reciprocating guard structure or a row unit with gathering chains and deck plates.
A larger/wider header allows for faster crop field clearing. However, the larger a header is, the more difficult it becomes to maintain efficient crop gathering because the lateral edges of the header flex as the edges experience changes in terrain, e.g., elevation. The flexing creates unnecessary strain on the header and cutting mechanism if not properly accounted for. Additionally, changes in elevation cause crop to go to waste if such flexing causes the cutting mechanism to cut above the stalk of the crop.
One attempt to improve header design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,526,206 which discloses a header having a central section and a lateral section that is constrained to pivot about a single axis in a single direction of motion. However, such a design still fails to account, e.g., for changes in terrain that differ between opposing lateral sections of the central section.
Therefore, what is desired is a header that is capable of accommodating for changes in terrain and/or elevation while still maintaining efficient crop gathering. When the disclosed invention is used in combination with an agricultural harvester, the invention overcomes one more of the disadvantages of conventional headers by providing a header having multiple sections, i.e., frame sections or assemblies, which can flex and rotate in three rotational degrees of freedom to track changes in terrain.